Dear Mom is a large (by Mission standards anyway) old-timey saloon that at first glance is purely for drinking bourbons and brews. But to the right of the massive bar is a roll-up kitchen window serving rich, mostly French-inspired food. Chez Spencer chef Laurent Katgely consulted on the chalkboard menu, which features one main every night (veal blanquette, bouillabaisse, and roasted and stuffed baby vegetable pistou, for example) along with several smaller bar-bite plates served on metal discs, prison-style.

"The four-cheese penne is delicious. The portion size was perfect for a bar, too. Also, if you're in a whiskey/scotch/bourbon kind of mood, then trust your bartender and try a new recommendation. They know their booze."

Dear Mom, they say, also taps into what we want as San Franciscans. People like dive bars because they’re cheap and they like the folks that inhabit them, but they will also drop $200 on a meal – even if they’re not making a lot of money. Jay and Oliver would hazard a guess that this city’s citizens spend 30 to 50 percent of their income on drinking and eating out. Thus, they serve $7 beer and shot specials alongside French pub fare.